By
Rebecca Sawady, Accelerated Math Pathway (AMP), 7th & 8th grade
Math has been in the news quite a bit in the last few weeks. You may have seen the article in the
October 1st Boston Globe magazine describing the “flipped” classroom model.
Or the
article in the New York Times around the importance of “recreational math.”
The idea of the “flipped” classroom model is for students to learn new material (often through videos) at home, freeing up class time for more discussion and problem solving.
Students (and families!) of my 7th and 8th grade math classes have experienced the “flipped” the classroom. At home, students watch a video that introduces new math material. They take notes, and do a few practice problems. In class, we review the content as needed, but the focus of class is on problem solving and extensions related to the material.
We also focus on developing critical thinking skills by working on more open ended “recreational math” problems that require strategic and mathematical reasoning. What fun!